Manfred Mortagne
'Manfred "Manny" Mortagne '(born Manfred Funderburker) is a member of The Scions of Eternal Joy, and self-appointed leader of #teamthrowsa. When he was young, he left his poor family, adopting his defunct ancestral name of Mortagne, in search of fame and fortune. Eventually, he desired to be a great sorcerer and storyteller, so he attended the prestigious Logos Praecantatio and went on to join the Scions Appearance Manny likes to wear flashy, fancy clothes. However, he compulsively avoids wasting money, so his outfits are usually actually regular traveler's gear, with showy elements over top like capes or turbans to distract from the plainer look beneath. He believes this gives him the look of a "world traveler". Debut When he was human, he was the tallest member of the team. He was thin, had a boney face with a large nose, and was starting to go prematurely gray. He had considerably expressive, arching eyebrows, and wore his dark brown hair slicked back and long enough to put into a short ponytail. His wore a beige, collared shirt with an opening going down most of his torso, fitted with crossing laces. He wore a green undershirt normally, but went without on stage. He wore brown pants with plenty of pocket room tucked into large, well-worn boots, held up by a pouched belt and suspenders. He usually wore an open black traveler's cloak over it with an emerald inner lining. To complete his "world travler" look, he added a secondary belt of pouches over his torso while traveling, as well as a turban and large goggles while on stage. Post-Reincarnation After being revived in the body of a gnome, Manny was shorter (naturally), and much younger looking. His skin was fair, and less worn. His face was fuller, with a healthy amount of body fat, and completely unrecognizable in structure. His hair was brown, short, and floofy, which he typically wore stylized to look "windswept" to keep with modern trends now that he had his youth back, and his eyebrows were straight and considerably thick, as were his sideburns. Naturally, he had to pick out a new outfit. Opting for the same combination of practicality and showiness, he got a similar shirt, only white, and kept it buttoned up to a more sensible neckline. His pants were gray, but still roomy, and still held up by suspenders. He wore more sensible black shoes with white socks. Humbled, but not deterred by his death, he still added flavor with a navy-blue cape with gold buttons that could be buttoned down his front like a cloak. While traveling, he usually wore it around him, concealing his body. However, when in battle, or on stage, he swept it back, revealing the crimson lining on the inside. Naturally, as a gnome, Manny acquired an attraction to large hats, and bought himself a pointy, crimson one without thinking. He later felt guilty about this, believing he was appropriating the culture of "true gnomes" but was hesitant to relinquish the headpiece. While preparing for their fight with Pierre, Manny, and the rest of #teamthrowsa, received +1 Cloaks of Resistance. These were black, but shimmered silver in the light due to near-microscopic slips of enchanted silver sown into the fabric. After the fight, he frequently traded between the cloak and his blue cape. Current After dying again at the hands of Pierre, and several harrowing events in the weeks following, Manny again updated his look. He bought a padded blue Zhongshan suit, designed for both formal occasions and travel, with black pants, and higher-end travel boots. His collar was left open, with billowy white ruffles spilling out over the jacket from the shirt beneath it. He had his Cloak of Resistance converted into a cape which integrates into his collar. He lost his pointed hat, and made a conscious effort to not replace it. Although, upon hearing of his loss, Carlos gifted him a velvety black fur ushanka hat emblazoned with a crimson star. Instead of wearing it, he and Carlos converted it to a hammock attached to his travel pack for Lilith to sleep in. Personality Manny is a natural show-off, driven to prove himself at any cost. Although he is very insecure and prone to selfishness, he cares deeply about the well-being of his loved ones, and of people in general. He has very little talent for anything, including magic and storytelling, but makes up for it with sheer determination, spending years learning these skills both on his own, and with the help of mentors. Most of the time, he sees the world as his stage, but when self-doubt strikes him, he becomes quiet and contemplative, opting to lurk in the background rather than engage with the people around him. Most of his interactions are rehearsed, with compliments, comebacks, and self-aggrandizements formulated for every contingency. This is because he's actually terrible at holding a conversation on the fly, and tends to be utterly tactless and land himself in hot water whenever put on the spot. To date this has earned him a mortal enemy in his ex-girlfriend, a night in jail, and a lifetime ban from a Menilehan school's sex-ed class. He had a deep affinity for animals, connecting with them far easier than with humans. This led him to a summoning archetype when he started learning magic. When he became a gnome, he appropriately gained the ability to speak with animals once a day. History Early Life Manny was born Manfred Funderberker, the fifth of nine siblings in a village in north-eastern Menileh. His mother was unusually well-educated, and home-schooled her children until they were old enough to find an apprenticeship in the village. Everyone was committed to do their part to support the impoverished family, but young Manny was often criticized for his selfishness, as he insisted on staying home, helping his mother mend the villagers' clothes with the younger siblings rather than find a trade, as he was uninterested in any life the village made available to him. Eventually, at the ripe age of fifteen, he reluctantly agreed to become the apprentice of his eldest sister, who had recently taken over as the town blacksmith. Before he began his work, he discovered his mother's connection to the long-forgotten clan Mortagne. Once a vast economic dynasty, with its fingers in nearly every industry in Kruta, the Mortagnes fell from prominence centuries before, its vast fortune split among generations of heirs who had changed their names to avoid old enemies, and dried up over the generations. Manny saw this as a chance to achieve the recognition he dreamed of, and to escape his family obligations at the same time. He took on the defunct surname of his ancestors, and declared his intention to seek out some remnant of the old family fortune that must surely be out there for him to claim. When he found it, he would deliver it to his family so they no longer needed to rely on eachother to get by, and each could be free to pursue their own endeavors. His father and most of his siblings saw this mission as hopeless, and a thin excuse to abandon the family for his own petty goals. Only his mother, eldest sister, and youngest brother would ever respond to his letters after he left, though they were bitter about his departure as well. The years of his life traveling the lands of Kruta, seeking out other descendants of the Mortagne family, and working odd jobs to survive. During that time, he developed an ear for stories, reveling in tales of adventure, and legends of treasure-hunters, searching for any clues that may connect to some lost piece of Mortagne treasure that may be out there. He found his own share of adventure, and uncovered many secrets of the family name, but never anything of particular value. Eventually, he gave up his endeavor, but could not bare to return empty handed to a family that he had abandoned. That was when he was struck by inspiration. New Ambitions Relationships Abilities Amethyst spike weapon.png|Amethyst's upgraded whip. NewWhip.png|Amethyst's whip. Category:Main Characters Category:Gems Category:Genderless Category:Featured Articles Category:Quartz